Edo State Police Nab Trio for Alleged Car Theft in Benin City

In a recent operation, the Edo State Police Command has apprehended two senior citizens and a female suspect on allegations of stealing Toyota Camry 2.4 cars worth N7 million during a crusade at Garrick Memorial School in Benin City. Commissioner of Police Funsho Adeboye revealed this development while parading 18 suspected criminals in Benin City.

The two sexagenarians, identified as Augustine Ikponmwoba, 67, and Roland Ibizugbe, 63, along with Blessing Joseph, 36, reportedly committed the offense on October 27, 2023. The stolen Toyota Camry cars, bearing registration numbers MUS 791GA and USL 93AM and valued at N3.5 million each, belonged to Mrs. Joy Mordi and Mr. Peter E. Abiwo.

Commissioner Adeboye disclosed that on November 27, 2023, at approximately 8 pm, a complaint was received from Mordi and Abiwo, stating that their vehicles, parked at Garrick Memorial Ground, Ekehuan Road, Benin City, during a crusade, were stolen after the event’s conclusion.

After a preliminary investigation, the case was transferred to the Anti-Vehicle Theft Unit of the State Criminal Investigation Division (CID). The arrest of Blessing Joseph, who possessed one of the phones left in Mordi’s vehicle, eventually led to the apprehension of Augustine Ikponmwoba, her male accomplice. Ikponmwoba, in turn, cooperated with the command’s operatives in apprehending Roland Ibizugbe.

Commissioner Adeboye noted that the suspects provided statements and confessed to the crime. In addition to the car theft case, the police also arrested 18 individuals on charges related to kidn@pping, cultism, armed robbery, and illeg@l possession of fire@rms, underscoring the comprehensive nature of the law enforcement operation.